Deputies, private security set for rally site

Friday

Jul 30, 2010 at 12:01 AMJul 30, 2010 at 1:00 PM

Brennan David

Security will be out in force for the 33rd annual National Bikers Roundup, which starts Tuesday in Columbia.

The Boone County Sheriff’s Department will be operating at full steam for the six-day motorcycle rally, with anticipated crowds of as many as 35,000 participants. Between 20 and 30 deputies will be working the event at any time, said Maj. Tom Reddin, and a prominent nationwide security firm has been hired by the Missouri Roundup Committee to provide additional security.

The private firm, Contemporary Services Corp., has worked the Super Bowl and holds contracts with several professional football, baseball and basketball organizations, NASCAR and universities. It will have 20 to 25 staff members working at any given time during the bike rally, Reddin said.

“We think we have a good plan in place,” he said. “We like the security company and have the knowledge that if we need more people, we will call on them. They can call for more as well.”

Planning for the event began in November for the sheriff’s department, which will operate as head of security. Capt. Gary German was put in charge of the security plan for the event and has coordinated with Columbia police, state police, the Boone County Fire Protection District, local hospitals and the private security firm in an effort to provide a safe rally for participants and residents affected by increased traffic and crowds.

German was not available for comment — Reddin described him as being “eyeballs deep in alligators” with preparations for the event.

Sheriff’s deputies at the end of their shifts will be asked to work additional hours for the sheriff’s department to provide adequate event security and maintain its regular standard of service, Reddin said. All vacation days have been denied during the event, and deputies will be working on their regularly scheduled days off at the rally. “Our resources will be pretty tight,” he said. “We certainly have a responsibility to maintain our standard of service and believe our plan allows us to do that.”

A flexible plan was important because the event’s largest obstacle will be faced before it officially begins. The influx of visitors from throughout the country could begin clogging local streets surrounding the fairground Monday, especially on Interstate 70, Highway 63 and the 70/63 connector.

Columbia police spokeswoman Officer Jessie Haden and Reddin are asking local residents to avoid areas around the fairground and major intersections and to have patience.

“If there is one thing we have learned, it is how to control the crowds in terms of getting them in and out,” he said of planning the event for more than 30 years.

Nunn described rally participants as “misunderstood” by the public because of negative stereotypes. Reddin said he also has heard negative rumors but disregarded them, citing the complexity of hosting a large event.

“That is true of any event,” he said of potential problem-causers. “Any time you get a large amount of the population together, some might be problem-causers. We are certainly cognitive of that. We are planning for the worst-case scenario and hoping it does not happen. Historically, this is a peaceful event.”

Providing security for the rally is not comparable to efforts at this week’s Boone County Fair because of the larger crowds expected at the rally, Reddin said. He said the biker rally is incomparable to anything the sheriff’s department has ever been asked to secure.